Rush Limbaugh Closes First Hour With Dead Air — Rush Limbaugh closed the first hour of his radio show on his flagship station, WABC, with 1:03 of dead air Monday. — From WABC's online feed of the final commercial break of the first hour: — While advertisers have fled Limbaugh's show since …

Rush Scrubs ‘Slut’ Comment, Demand for Fluke Sex Tapes — RushLimbaugh.com appears to have removed parts of his radio transcripts from February 29 and March 1 in which he called Sandra Fluke a “slut” and demanded a sex tape as a thank you to taxpayers for subsidizing her birth control.

Limbaugh's AWOL Sponsors Open Way for Nonprofits — But American Heart Association Wants Out — The boycott against talk-radio host Rush Limbaugh has some unexpected beneficiaries: nonprofits getting more ad time on his show. — The United Negro College Fund, Big Brothers Big Sisters …

It's Always A Conspiracy: Derrick Bell Edition — Yesterday, the Breitbart empire stepped up to the plate, called their shot, swung, missed, hit themselves in the face with the bat, then took a triumphant trot around the bases as spectators looked on with piteous and mocking wonder.

Mitt Romney's media charm offensive — BOSTON — It's the worst-kept secret of the 2012 campaign: The candidate who does the least public media-bashing — Mitt Romney — has the worst relationship of all with the press. — But as Romney seeks to nail down the GOP nomination and cement …

Gallup: Unemployment now up over 9% — The Bureau of Labor Statistics will release the official unemployment report for the month of February, but we have two previews this week to use as a gauge. First, the ADP report predicts a net growth of 216,000 jobs in the private sector …

U.S. Unemployment Up in February — Underemployment is 19.1%, up from 18.7% in January — PRINCETON, NJ — U.S. unemployment, as measured by Gallup without seasonal adjustment, increased to 9.1% in February from 8.6% in January and 8.5% in December. — The .5-percentage-point increase …

How a $1,000 test could destroy the health-insurance industry — The New York Times reports that the cost of sequencing an individual genome will soon be less than $1,000. That's not nothing, but given what most health care costs, it's not much. And it means that an individual mandate — or something much like it — is inevitable.

Romney Calls Southern Primaries “An Away Game” — Lowering expectations for a rough stretch, he tells an Alabama radio station he hopes to pick up delegates in Birmingham — even if he can't win the state. — Mitt Romney admitted Thursday that he might not be the most natural fit …

Ron Paul's pointless Internet presidency — Ron Paul has about as many votes in this year's GOP primaries as he has Facebook fans - is his fierce online following that much less relevant than it appears? — Four years ago, the shrewdest presidential candidates used YouTube, MySpace, Facebook and a dash of Twitter.

Pat Robertson Says Marijuana Use Should be Legal — Of the many roles Pat Robertson has assumed over his five-decade-long career as an evangelical leader — including presidential candidate and provocative voice of the right wing — his newest guise may perhaps surprise his followers the most: marijuana legalization advocate.

Rush Limbaugh's Advertisers, March 8 — At least 50 advertisers have reportedly dropped their ads from Rush Limbaugh's radio show in the wake of his misogynistic attacks on Sandra Fluke. — Here are his March 8 advertisers, in the order they appeared on WABC, the flagship station for Limbaugh's show.

Mitt: Pay for Your Own Damn College! — And get off my lawn while you're at it. — Earlier this week, a pretty interesting and telling exchange took place at a Mitt Romney town hall meeting. A student asked Romney what he would do to make college more affordable for students who struggle to pay for it.

Gas Prices Now A Big Factor In Presidential Election — MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — It might be one of the biggest issues in the upcoming presidential election. Last night, CBS News exit polls found 77 percent of those voting in seven Super Tuesday states say rising gas prices were an important factor in their vote.

A Jeffersonian Proposal for the Constitution — There are two basic approaches one can take to thinking about the United States Constitution. One is to treat it is a given, whether that refers only to the specific document proposed and ratified in 1787-88 with subsequent textual amendments …

OMM done with JC Penney — The leader of a pro-family advocacy group says only time will tell whether JC Penney's decision to have a high-profile homosexual entertainer as its spokesperson was a good business decision. — Despite opposition from the American Family Association's advocacy …

William Smith, the invisible candidate — William R. Smith is the invisible candidate. — No one has seen him; no one has heard him speak. Outside of his home county of Pike, there is probably no Democrat who could recognize him on sight. — Tuesday, the Waverly resident won …

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